Fire and Ice III: Interlude
by Elorendil
Summary: A short story from the Fire And Ice series. With all the hustle and bustle of establishing a new base, Chiara is starting to feel a bit lonely. Thrawn knows exactly what is needed to make her feel loved and appreciated again. Total fluff! This takes place about a year after Outsider and also explains the origin of Thrawn's nickname for her. As always, reviews are love.


AN: After all the heavy stuff that went on in Trial By Fire, I felt the need to write something light and fluffy, thus this short story was born. I was having trouble finding a subject for it and thought of how I've seen other people base stories/chapters on a song, so I decided to give that a try. I chose Solomon's Song, by Plumb. I'm pretty happy with how it turned out! Please let me know what you think, reviews are always much loved and appreciated.

* * *

Chiara picked disinterestedly at her dinner, pushing the bits of meat around in the thick, spicy brown sauce whose name she couldn't pronounce. She glanced at the wall chrono and sighed. Clearly, Thrawn had either lost track of time or forgotten that he promised to meet her for dinner. Ever since they had come to the Crustai base two and half months earlier, he had been on the move almost constantly, checking to make sure everything was running smoothly and overseeing the warriors and techs as they found and worked out the various bugs from the systems. She had been helping him as much as she could, but their work usually seemed to keep them on opposite sides of the station and they were both generally too tired by the end of the night to do more than fall into bed together and fall asleep almost instantly. She didn't mind the hard work, but she was beginning to miss spending time with him and had been looking forward to at least sitting down to a brief dinner with him.

To her surprise, Thrawn walked in just as she was starting to clear away her dishes. Her face lit up as she saw him and she hurried towards him. Knowing how acutely uncomfortable public displays of affection made him, she stopped short and gave him a warm smile. He looked at her gravely. "Chiara, I'm afraid I need to go down to the planet for a day or two. The science team needs my assistance and input. I'll be rather busy, but I thought you might like to accompany me, if only for the fresh air."

"Oh, sure," she said, trying to hide her disappointment that he hadn't come to eat with her. She consoled herself with the knowledge that, if she went down to the planet with him, she would have an hour or so with him while they were in transit to the surface.

"Excellent. We will leave immediately. I've already had a fresh change of clothes packed for you," Thrawn said, gesturing towards the door.

Chiara hastily cleared her dishes away and then fell into step beside him, trying to be grateful that they would at least have some time together.

* * *

Chiara gazed out at the horizon as Thrawn guided the shuttle smoothly down through the atmosphere. She hadn't seen this portion of the planet, before. In the distance, she could see a vast, blue ocean, stretching as far as her eye could see. A silvery beach snaked along the shoreline, providing a line of demarcation before the lush, green foliage of the forest began. Thrawn eased the shuttle down in a clearing a short distance from the shoreline. She bit back a frustrated sigh as he keyed the systems into standby; he'd been preoccuppied enough to prohibit any real conversation on the flight down and all she'd managed to draw out of him was a one word answer, here or there. It was hardly the quality time she'd been hoping for.

Seeming oblivious to her disappointment, Thrawn smiled and offered her his hand as they both slipped out of their flight restraints. She returned his smile as she accepted his hand, but knew that the expression didn't reach her eyes. After that brief moment of closeness, Thrawn stepped away and headed towards the back of the shuttle. She sighed as the evening breeze caressed her face when he keyed opn the hatch, wafting the sweet scents of exotic flowers to her. Thrawn hefted a alrge pack over one shoulder and led her down into the warm rays of the sun. To her surprise, instead of heading inland, Thrawn led her towards the beach.

"Aren't we going to wrong way? I would think the team would be set up farther inland, not on the beach," Chiara asked.

"Just come with me and you'll see," Thrawn replied cryptically. He halted when they were close enough for her to be able to hear the sound of the waves on the sandy shore. His glowing eyes glittered with anticipation. "Close your eyes," he told her.

Chiara looked back into the fiery depths of his eyes, trying not to let herself get her hopes up too much, in case she was misreading the situation. "We aren't actually here to help the science team, are we?"

One corner of Thrawn's mouth twitched upwards into a smile. "Wait and see. Now, close your eyes."

He put one hand on the small of her back and slipped his free hand into hers to guide her along. She considered reaching out to the Force to guide herself, but decided that would be cheating and allowed Thrawn to lead her along. Wherever he was taking her, it was closer to the beach; she could hear the sound of the waves more clearly, now. After nearly five minutes of walking, the hard ground gave way into the soft, shifting surface of sand. Thrawn led her along for a few more meters, then drew her to a stop.

"Wait here," he told her. He released her hand and stepped away, leaving her to stand motionless with her eyes still closed. She could hear the sound of him rummaging in the pack and taking things out. She thought she caught a whiff of some delicious smelling dish, but the perfume of the many aromatic flowers that grew nearby quickly diluted the smell too much for her to be certain. She heard Thrawn return to her side after a few minutes and he folded her in his arms. "You can open your eyes, now," he told her, his lips brushing against her ear as he leaned in close.

The sight that met her eyes made her breath catch in her throat. He had indeed brought her to the beach. Amidst the perfect, crystalline sand, he had spread a blanket for them and laid out an appetizing-looking meal.

"What's this?" She asked Thrawn in surprise, twisting in his arms to meet his gaze. She had been expecting that perhaps he was just taking her to the beach for a quick swim before they joined the scientists, but he seemed to have something a bit more romantic in mind.

There was a broad smile on his face. "A little surprise that I have been planning for the last week," he told her. "I know we have both been very busy since we arrived at the base and I also know that you are getting lonely. No, don't object, I know you are," he said, cutting off the objection that was already on her lips. "You've been working quite hard to assist me; you deserve a break and my undivided attention for a day."

She felt her eyes widen. "A whole day?"

Thrawn chuckled at her response and kissed her forehead. "Yes, a whole day. Thisa can handle the base until tomorrow." He led her over to the blanket and seated her next to him. "I hope you are still hungry, you got to the mess sooner then I had anticipated."

"I didn't eat much, I mostly just picked at my dinner," she told him, accepting the plate he offered her. She sniffed appreciatively at the delicious aroma wafting from the _bekcrav _filet and the tubers that accompanied it. "I'm hungry now, though, and it smells delicious."

"Good," Thrawn said, passing her a glass of _htisah ch'atvuwut_.

"This is a beautiful beach," Chiara observed, gazing out over the ocean and the gentle waves that broke across the beach. On an impulse, she set down her plate and glass so she could pull off her boots. She scooted to the edge of the blanket and buried her bare toes in the fine, cool sand.

"What are you doing?" Thrawn asked, looking puzzled as she wriggled her toes in the silvery sand.

"Try it," she encouraged him, taking back her food and sipping at the spicy drink. "It feels good."

"You do have odd habits," he murmured, shaking his head. Instead of joining her, he took a bite of his own filet. "You had better eat if you don't want your food to get cold."

Chiara rolled her eyes at him, but cut a corner of her filet off and took a bite, anyway. "You have no sense of adventure."

"And you are reckless," he retorted with a teasing smile.

"Because clearly I'm in danger of losing my toes by burying them in sand?" she shot back. "Oh, yes, now that you point it out, I can see how terribly reckless this is of me."

"You're impertinent, too," Thrawn growled at her, his smile still in place to show that it was only in jest.

"Admit it, you love that about me," Chiara said, spearing another bite of her _bekcrav_.

"I do, indeed," Thrawn conceded. "Although, I must say that I appreciate the fact that you save your smartness for when we are alone and avoid making insubordinate comments in front of the crew."

"Of course not, Thrawn. I may enjoy teasing you, but I would never do it publicly," she assured him.

"I know that, now," he acknowledged. "I will admit that I was initially concerned that you might not see the necessity of that boundary."

"I guess I can understand that concern. We come from different enough cultures that I can see how you might think such behavior could be permissible in the Republic." She pondered for a moment, slowly savoring her meal. "Is there anything else that I am doing you wish I would stop?"

Thrawn took a sip of his drink and seemed to consider for a moment. "I would appreciate it if you would put your book or datapad away on the shelving unit instead of leaving it on the bedside table," he told her.

"That really bothers you?" Chiara asked, arching one shapely eyebrow at him. She wasn't sure what answer she had been expecting, but it wasn't that. It made sense when she thought about it, though; he had a habit of putting everything away very precisely in their quarters. Given how much smaller it was than their house on Csilla, such neatness was almost a necessity if they didn't want to be constantly tripping over things. Still, she had never considered leaving it on the nighttable to be a hazard or really even out of place.

"Yes," he answered evenly. "It is not where it belongs."

"Okay, I'll make a point of remembering to put it away. I guess I'm not used to actually having things to put away. At our house on Csilla, it seemed natural, since everything already had its place. Here on Crustai, that's not the case, though," she told him.

"Would it make it easier for you if you had a designated space for your things?" Thrawn asked.

"No, I think I just need to make a conscious effort to put things away," she assured him, wiggling her toes in the sand once more and watching how the fine particles streamed off her feet in silvery torrents.

"Is there anything you would like me to do differently?"

Chiara considered this for a moment. "I wish you weren't so tired every night when you come home. You usually fall asleep as soon as you climb in bed. I miss spending time with you and I miss how you used to hold me at night."

Thrawn sighed and set his half-finished meal aside so he could take her hand. "I am sorry, Chiara. There has been so much to do to get the base running smoothly and I am afraid I have been neglecting you. I promise you that it is only temporary, though. Things should start settling down now that the crew is starting to establish a routine and we have worked through most of the hardware and software issues."

"I know it's only a short-term phase, Thrawn, which is why I haven't complained about it. I wouldn't have said anything at all, if you hadn't asked," she assured him, squeezing his hand.

Thrawn leaned in to kiss her on the cheek. "I do appreciate your understanding, _Elor'endil_, as well as all of the help you have given me over the last few months."

Chiara frowned at him. "What did you just call me?"

"_Elor'endil_," he repeated.

"Okay, but what does it mean? I don't think I've ever heard that, before," she asked, curious.

"It's similar to your Basic term for..." he trailed off, clearly searching for the right word. "No, I don't believe you have anything in Basic that would be an adequate comparison. It implies a state of complete commitment and devotion to a person or an ideal, a commitment that encompasses the physical, mental and emotional. In this context, it would imply that you are the object of my devotion."

A smile touched her lips. "That's beautiful, Thrawn."

"You find this to be an acceptable term of endearment, then?" he asked.

She nodded. "Very acceptable. The meaning is lovely and I like the way it sounds, too."

"Alright then, _Elor'endil_ you shall be," he told her, running his fingers through a lock of her dark auburn hair.

They finished the rest of their meal in companionable silence. "What would you like to do? Thrawn asked as he packed their dishes away in the bag.

"Is the water safe?" Chiara asked, gazing out across the clear blue expanse of water and watching as the waves broke gently against the shored.

"It is," Thrawn confirmed. "There are some fish here, but nothing predatory or dangerous."

"Let's go for a walk in the shallows, then." Her eyes sparkled with mischief as she glanced at him. "You'd better take those boots off, though, or they are going to get wet."

Thrawn shook his head reprovingly at her expression, but complied anyway. Chiara rolled her pants midway up her calf to keep them dry and got to her feet gracefully. Thrawn followed suit and they walked down to the waterline, hand in hand. She noted the blue highlights that reflected on the sand around Thrawn's feet as he walked, barefoot, beside her. She paused when they reached the line in the sand where the waves had washed over the shore, smoothing the soft sand into an almost uniform surface and leaving tiny ripples in it. A wave rushed forward to meet her as she took the final step forward. It broke over her toes and ran up her feet, swirling around her ankles before it receded again into the vast ocean. The water was cool, she noted, but not uncomfortably so.

She turned and smiled at Thrawn. "I never got to do this sort of thing when I was a Jedi," she told him.

"That makes two of us," he told her. "Before I joined the Defense Fleet, I had never left Csilla. I've been to a number of our colony worlds since then, but there was seldom time for shore leave. Not that one would want to take shore leave on some of our worlds. Several of the colonies I visited early in my career were at some of our more inhospitable outposts."

They turned in unison and headed along the waveline, enjoying each others company and the sensation of the waves breaking around their ankles and tugging at them gently, as if the ocean was begging for them to go deeper and swim. Chiara paused at a small tidepool to examine some very colorful marine life, including some sort of living coral and a few bright red fish spots of vibrant yellow.

"How are you liking living on the base?" Thrawn asked her after a few moments, breaking the easy silence. "I know it is very different for you to be constantly in one place. It must seem a bit restrictive to be confined to a few hundred meters when you are accustomed to wandering the entire galaxy."

"It is a little different," she admitted, looking up from the her study of the miniature ecosystem contained in the tidepool and falling into step beside him once more. "I like it, though. There's something refreshing about knowing that I'm going to wake up tomorrow in the same place I've woken up for the last several months. It might get restrictive, at some point, but I enjoy it right now."

"Good," Thrawn told her. "Hopefully we will start running more scouting missions in the near future. That should help to break up any monotony, as well."

Chiara nodded in agreement and took a deep breath. _This is probably as good a time as any to ask. _"I've been meaning to ask you, Thrawn; could you have one of your pilots teach me to fly a clawcraft? I used to fly fighters quite a lot and it is definitely something that I miss a lot. Besides, then I could help with the security sweeps and such."

Thrawn seemed to consider this for a moment. "I believe that would be permissible," he told her. "I'll have the squadron leader start you on the simulations as soon as we return." He arched one blue-black eyebrow at her, an amused smile tugging at his lips. "Are you sure you can avoid crashing my clawcraft, though? I don't think I need to remind you about the state that your fighter was in when I found you."

"Oh, please, not that again," she told him, rolling her eyes. "That wasn't my fault. That fighter wasn't anywhere near ready for combat yet. That I got it out in one piece is nothing short of a mir-" her teasing diatribe turned into a startled yelp as her bare foot landed in a slimy patch of what appeared to be a red seaweed that had washed up on the shore. It slid out from underneath her weight, dumping her unceremoniously into an oncoming wave. She came up drenched and sputtering, only to find Thrawn laughing in amusement.

"It's not funny," she bit out, trying unsuccessfully to hide her own mirth at her predicament as she pushed a dripping strand of hair out of her face.

"I do believe that was the most ungraceful thing I've ever seen you do," he chuckled, coming to a halt beside her. "Are you alright?"

She shot him a mock glare, then lunged at him, intent on making him share in her discomfiture. He anticipated the move and took a long step sideways, evading her grasp.

"I'll take that as a 'yes'," he told her, grinning.

"Take this as a 'yes'," Chiara retorted. She reached out to the Force and seized him, picking him up and hurling him through the air to land with a noisy splash in the deeper water.

His blue-black hair was plastered to his forehead when he emerged a few seconds later, treading water. "You!" he spluttered in shock. "That was a dirty trick, Jedi."

"Maybe," Chiara said, knifing through the water to join him. She swam a lazy circle around him. "But you deserved it for laughing at me."

Thrawn made no reply, but flipped over onto his back and stroked along beside her. Chiara's uniform chafed at her shoulders as she cut through the water with powerful strokes. "Well, this isn't going to work," she muttered, angling back towards the shore. She waited until she could touch the bottom before gliding to a halt.

"What are you doing?" Thrawn asked as she started working at the fasteners on her tunic.

"Your job, apparently," she told him tartly, throwing a saucy look in his direction as she unfastened and stepped out of her water-logged pants. She wadded them into a ball and threw them back up onto shore. Thrawn splashed up behind her before she could get her tunic off and put his arms around her waist. She shivered as his lips brushed her jawline.

"Let me help you with that," he said, slipping her tunic off her shoulders and sending it sailing through the air to join her other clothes. "I am loathe to have it said that I did not perform any of my duties."

Chiara slipped out of his arms and backstroked away from him, relishing the feel of the sunlight on her bare skin. She caught a glimpse of Thrawn swimming easily towards the shore. As she watched, he picked up the bundles of her clothes and carefully spread them on a rock to dry, then stripped out of his dripping uniform and laid it out beside hers. He plunged back into the surf and swam back to join her, the clear blue hue of the water enhancing the deep blue of his skin tone. She watched him come at her for a moment, then dove beneath the waves with a wicked grin, drawing on the Force to extend her supply of oxygen as she swam away from Thrawn. It was a bit of a surprise to find that he wasn't far behind her when she surfaced for air nearly three minutes later. _The water is clear enough that he can track me, even if I am submerged_, she realized as she dove again. She changed tactics, flipping over and heading straight for him. He reached for her as she passed him, but she darted to the side at the last minute and his fingers closed on empty water. He made a few more tries at her as she swam tauntingly around him, keeping just out of arms reach, then finally gave up and simply treaded water until her lungs began to burn and she was forced to surface. He was ready for her, this time, lunging forward and throwing both arms around her waist as soon as her head broke the surface. He pulled her to his chest and locked his arms around her, kicking back towards the shallower water.

"Let me go," she spluttered in mock-anger, trying to wiggle free.

"Never," he told her, planting his feet where the water was deep enough that he could reach the bottom, but she couldn't. She could see the amusement dancing in his eyes as he shifted his grip on her and droplets of water sparkled like blue crystals on his skin as the sunlight caught them. She stopped struggling and wound her arms around his neck as his lips covered hers in a passionate kiss. She could taste the salt water that lingered on his lips as she wrapped one leg around his torso to anchor herself more firmly to him as she returned his kiss with equal fire.

* * *

Thrawn and Chiara reclined on their blanket later that evening, letting the fading rays of the sun dry them. Thankfully, Thrawn had brought an extra blanket, because the first one had gotten soaked in the brief rainshower that blew in while they swam. Already wet, they had simply laughed and dove back under the surf together to escape the driving rain that stung their faces and shoulders every time they surfaced for air.

Thrawn trailed his fingers across her bare shoulder as she leaned back against his muscular chest, gazing up at the clouds that were bathed in brilliant hues of orange, pink and blue as the sun slowly dropped towards the horizon. Chiara sighed contentedly in his arms and laced her fingers through his. The sun had finally dropped low enough to set the ocean ablaze with a dazzling display of colors that nearly took her breath away.

"I can't decide which is more beautiful," Thrawn murmured teasingly, twisting a damp strand of her hair around his finger. "You or the sunset."

"It is lovely," she agreed, missing the teasing note in his words, intent listening to the sound of the evening wind in the trees and the waves lapping at the sand.

Thrawn smiled at her distractedness and kissed her neck tenderly. "Your beauty is far above anything this planet has to offer, _Elor'endil_," he told her. "You are more beautiful even than the stars you so love."

The blush that crept up her neck made Thrawn chuckle and kiss her again, his lips tracing the flush of color. "It is true, " he insisted. "Many waters cannot quench the love I bear for you, _Elor'endil_, neither can the floods drown it."

"You, sir, are a flatterer," Chiara told him, digging her elbow gently into his ribs. She turned in his arms so she could look into his fiery eyes, all joking fading from her eyes. "I love you more than words can ever say. Thank you for taking time to bring me down here, Thrawn, this has been wonderful."

Thrawn smiled at her. "I am pleased that you are enjoying it. I promise you that I will make a point of finding more time for us to be together, Chiara. Your happiness is important to me and I miss your company, as well."

"That's all I can ask of you and more," she assured him, stroking his cheek. She turned back to watch as the sun vanished over the horizon, leaving behind a dim glow that faded slowly into darkness. They watched as the stars appeared one by one and the moon slowly rose over the calm waters of the sea, its radiance reflected in the gentle waves.

"Your eyes look tired," Thrawn observed as she held back a yawn. His glowing eyes had no trouble seeing in the dim light of the moon, she knew. "Go to sleep and dream pleasant dreams. You need your rest so you can enjoy tomorrow."

"You make it sound like you have big plans," Chiara observed as she settled comfortably onto the blanket for the night. Thrawn lay down behind her and put his arms around her.

"You will have to wait and see," he told her. "Now, sleep."

Secure in his arms, Chiara closed her eyes and drifted off to sleep with the soothing sounds of breeze rustling through the nearby trees of the forest and the endless sound of waves breaking on the beach.

* * *

Chiara was pulled from her dreams by Thrawn kissing her awake early the next morning, wanting to share the brilliant sunrise with her. They shared a few pastries for breakfast, as well as the fruit that grew on the nearby trees. The branches grew far too high overhead for either of them to reach, but Chiara was able to pluck a few of the sweet fruits from the branches with the Force.

They meandered along the beach for some time, hand in hand, examining the new fish and other aquatic lifeforms that had appeared in the tidepools overnight. Most of the morning and early afternoon was spent exploring the vividly colored coral reefs that grew nearby using the rebreathers that Thrawn had brought. The variety in the marine ecology was astonishing, both in numbers and in the wide array of characteristics and colors that they saw. Chiara gave up on keeping track of the number different species they encountered when she neared the one hundred after less than an hour of swimming. Her favorite was a small crustacean about the size of her thumb whose shell was striped in bright yellow and green. She caught one of them and watched in amusement as it scuttled around the palm of her hand for a few moments before she returned it to its home.

Many of the marine lifeforms seemed attracted to Thrawn's glowing eyes and he had to shoo away a small school of overly inquisitive fish that tried to nibble at his blue skin. Chiara laughed into her rebreather at the exasperated expression on his face. He shook his head ruefully at the stream of bubbles issuing from her rebreather, clearly knowing that she was laughing at his predicament, despite the lack of sound. She finally gave in and helped him scare away the persistent school so they could move on.

They basked in the warmth of the afternoon sun, letting it dry them once again as they relaxed together on their blanket when they returned to the beach. Chiara was beginning to doze lightly in his arms when he finally slipped away from her and got up. She squinted against the glare of the sun as he crossed to the rock where he had laid out their now-dry clothes the day before. There was only one thing that could mean, she knew; it was time for them to gather their things and return to the base. It was tempting to complain about going back and beg for a little more time here on the planet, but Chiara resisted the urge, knowing it would make him feel torn between his duty and her and not wanting to spoil the lovely time they'd had. She accepted her uniform from him with a smile and stretched up to place a featherlight kiss on his lips. Thrawn abandoned his own uniform, dropping it into a heap on the blanket so he could wrap her up in both arms to pull her into a deeper kiss.

When he finally released her, it took a minute for her to recover her breath enough to speak. "Thank you for bringing me down here, Thrawn. It has been wonderful to have you to myself for a while and I truly enjoyed this."

"I'm glad you enjoyed it, _Elor'endil_. It is my intention to make these excursions a semi-regular occurence, when things are quiet enough for me to take a few days off. I thought that next time, perhaps we would take a hike through one of the mountain passes," he told her, stooping to retrieve his clothes.

"I would like that very much," she told him, following suit.

"Consider it a promise, then," Thrawn said with a smile.

"I'll hold you to that," Chiara warned.

They dressed quickly and Chiara helped him shake the sand off the blanket and pack the few items they had brought with them. They walked back to the shuttle hand in hand, both already anticipating their return to the planet.


End file.
